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The Kyoto standard went into effect today, and we are not a part of it.

In an editorial today in the Star Tribune, it is argued that Minnesota is close to being at the standard, and that to continue Minnesota’s legacy as a green-er state, we should aspire to the Kyoto protocol, even if the US gov’t isn’t going to adhere.

The editorial also contained this tidbit, which I fould very interesting:

More than 800 wind turbines across the state, largely on agricultural land, provide 595 megawatts of power — enough to power every household in Minneapolis. Minnesota’s farmers are also leaders in the biofuel sector, with a growing number of farmer-owned ethanol and biodiesel facilities.

There are 13 ethanol plants in Minnesota, three under construction, and three soy diesel plants under construction or planned. With the proposed increase in the ethanol mandate for gas in Minnesota (from 10 to 20 percent by 2012), and mounting demand for biodiesel, more such plants are expected.

It also talks about solar panels being installed on gov’t buildings and how IBM saved almost $800 million in the past 15 years by becoming more energy efficent. Anyway, fun things to think about.